Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Criminal Justice topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Senate amends bill on protection of justice system to clarify penalties for threats against judges and board members
Summary
Senate Bill 92 was amended on the floor to clarify that threats by inmates against the Board of Pardons and judges can carry increased penalties; an amendment was adopted after a committee-of-the-whole and the bill advanced to the third-reading calendar.
Senate Bill 92, described by sponsors as a measure to protect the justice system, drew a floor amendment from Senator Money clarifying language about crimes committed against members of the Board of Pardons and judges.
Senator Money argued the amendment would ensure an inmate who kills a member of the Board of Pardons could be prosecuted under capital-punishment provisions and said current misdemeanor penalties for threatening judicial or pardon officials were insufficient. "This bill will increase the crime penalty... for those individuals threatened to do physical harm to a judge or a board member of the Board of Pardons," he said, explaining the amendment increases certain threat offenses to higher degrees of assault.
Other senators questioned the need to single out particular officeholders and raised concerns about overbreadth or unintended application; the body moved into a committee of the whole to consider details. Sponsors explained the amendment was intended to clarify existing code sections (including a citation to 765202 sub k in floor discussion) and to avoid duplicative references to capital punishment in the statute.
The amendment passed on the floor and the president announced the bill, as amended, had 26 recorded ayes, no nays and three absences and was placed on the third-reading calendar for further action.
